- Man United are in talks over the signing of Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt
- De Ligt previously worked with United boss Erik ten Hag at Ajax five years ago
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Bayern Munich supporters have started a petition to block the transfer of Matthijs de Ligt to Manchester United.
De Ligt has indicated that he wants to move to Manchester United and is keen to work with his old Ajax boss Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.
United are ready to offer De Ligt, 24, a five-year contract if they can strike a deal for £42m including add-ons with Bayern Munich, who need the money to sign Jonathan Tah from Bayer Leverkusen as his replacement.
And Bayern fans have been far from impressed with the reports which have continued to gather pace over the summer.
They have now gone as far as to set up a petition in order to stop the potential move with over 14,000 having signed it by Thursday night.
Matthijs de Ligt has reportedly given the green light for a potential move to Manchester United
The description on the petition reads: ‘we all want Matthijs de Ligt to stay at FC Bayern Munich! He has proven that he’s a world class defender, probably the best in our squad.
‘There is a reason why he was elected as our best player in the 2022/23 season. Furthermore he is only 24 years old and has a bright future ahead, which he is going to use to fulfil his huge potential.
‘Despite his young age, Mattha is already very mature and has a great mentality which will definitely make him a leading figure in defence and probably a competitor for captaincy in some years.
‘His ability to speak English, German and Dutch fluently would help him a lot for that. With 19 years he already brought Ajax Amsterdam to the UCL semi finals as captain.
Bayern Munich fans have signed a petition opposing the transfer in their thousands
‘Selling Matthijs de Ligt would be an absolutely horrible decision and we would definitely regret it. That’s why we use our voice to call attention that we will NOT make this mistake!’
After taking over at Ajax in 2018, Ten Hag made De Ligt the club’s youngest-ever captain as they went on to win both the Eredivisie and the KNVB Cup in the 2018-19 season.
They also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in the same campaign.
De Ligt joined Juventus that summer and went on to sign for Bayern Munich for £68m in 2022.
He has now made 73 appearances for the club, helping them win a Bundesliga title and a German Super Cup.
Should the move be completed, De Ligt would join fellow ex-Ajax stars Antony, Donny van de Beek, Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez and Andre Onana at Old Trafford.
Manchester United have already lost Raphael Varane this summer, with Victor Lindelof’s future at the club also uncertain.
